I have been a vegetarian for more than half of my life, 19 years of non meat eating. I was never a big fan of chicken or steak, cutting it up and pushing it around my plate as a youngster so really the transition was a no brainer for me. As a youth, I was content to live on side dishes, eating mashed potatoes and green beans, spaghetti, and the occasional salad and of course cookies and brownies because those delights are vegetarian!

Let's just say that I wasn't the healthiest of vegetarians nor was I a very diverse one. I stuck to those American style sides, Tex-Mex and Italian. It wasn't until I went to college in Boston that I discovered Thai, Japanese, and Indian food. Then working in various restaurants in my young life opened my eyes and led me to be a bit of a vegetarian food snob!

I was enthralled when restaurants would take the time to create interesting vegetarian options and whenever I traveled I searched those places out. Back then being a vegetarian was a novelty, many places didn't even know what it meant and let's just say that a lot of my early restaurant experiences as a vegetarian consisted of pasta primavera, steamed vegetables, or baked potatoes and side salads.

As I became increasingly exposed to different ethnic foods and the non-meat culinary world grew, I started to expand my palate and my own creations but I was hesitant. My first major influence was Linda Gassenheimer's cookbook, Vegetarian Dinner in Minutes. It was the first cookbook that I owned that took a gourmet approach to vegetarian cooking by combining interesting flavors and divided the recipes into ethnic subsections; Mediterranean, American, Tex-Mex and South-Western, Far East, and Cajun and Caribbean.

I made every recipe in that book, each one was delicious and friends were impressed that vegetable based cuisine could be so delicious. It is still one of my favorite books although my tastes and food choices have changed yet, I still gravitate to the cuisines and flavors that I am comfortable with when creating recipes; Tex-Mex and Mediterranean. I have decided that my goal is to experiment with other flavors profiles that I may not be as comfortable with hence these Asian inspired Bok Choy Rolls that combine liberal amounts of ginger and garlic with soy sauce and sesame while mixing in a burst of sweetness with fresh blueberries. This recipe is not for the faint of heart, rolling those bok choy leaves was not an easy task and took a lot of patience, but it was worth it in the end when all of those delicious flavors combined

Above I touched upon a very important topic that I think deserves discussing. As we grow and evolve and our bodies and tastes develop and change our food choices should change as well. As I said, I have been a vegetarian for 19 years but what I consume now is completely different from what I consumed then. I eat for health and nourishment and flavor now was as before I only ate for taste and convenience. I think that it is extremely important to

listen to your body and eat for your own personal health,

no two people are the same. I have friends that love raw foods and others who can not digest it well and I personally I love a vegan lifestyle but I do consume small amounts of dairy as my body needs the B12 and the Amino Acid Lysine and I would prefer to get it from food as opposed to a supplement. An Alkaline lifestyle is not a diet plan, it a way to create balance in your eating, where 70% of your food is alkaline forming with 30% is acid forming. So if your body needs a little protein in your life from chicken or fish, go for it. Eat for YOUR health! Enjoy!

Red Quinoa, Kale and Blueberry Bok Choy Rolls with a Honey Soy Tahini Dipping Sauce

1 head of Bok Choy, leaves separated with stems removed

2 cups Water

1 cup of Quinoa

2 cups of Kale chiffonade

2 large Carrots, grated

6 cloves of Garlic, minced

2in of Ginger, planed or minced

1 cup Corn

1 cup Blueberries

1 tbs Sesame Oil

2 tbs Olive Oil

1 tbs Soy Sauce

Dash of Pink HImalayan Sea Salt to taste

Soy Tahini Dipping Sauce

1/4 cup Tahini

1 tbs Honey

1 tbs Soy Sauce

1 tsp Granulated Garlic

1 tsp Dried Ginger

1 tbs Olive Oil

1-2 tbs of water as needed

Cut the bok choy leaves from the base, when purchasing look for a boy choy with large leaves that are firm and undamaged. Remove the thick stem at the base. Heat 2 inches of water in a large pot fitted with a steam plate. Steam the bok Choy leaves until pliable about 2 minutes. Remove and set aside.

Meanwhile, heat 2 cups of water and the quinoa over high heat until boiling. Reduce heat to simmer and cover, cooking until all of the water has been absorbed, about 20 minutes. Remove from heat but keep the lid on so as to keep the quinoa warm.

Taking a handful of kale leaves, roll them and thinly slice to obtain strips (chiffonade), add them to a large bowl with the cup of corn, shredded carrot, garlic and ginger. add the warm quinoa and combine in order to slightly wilt the kale. Carefully stir in the blueberries.

In a small dish combine the 1 tbs of sesame oil, the 2 tbs of olive oil, and the 1 tbs of soy sauce. Add to the bowl and stir well to combine flavors. Set aside.

Make the dipping sauce by combining the tahini, honey, soy sauce, oil, ginger and garlic in a small bowl. Use water to thin it to the desired consistency.

Taking a bok choy leaf, add a heading spoonful of filling to the center. Bring the ends of the leaf upward, crossing in order to create a pocket. bring the top down. Holding both the bottom and top over the filling take the left side of the leaf and push it over the filling, rolling tight. Continue until you have rolled all of the leaves. Dip into the sauce and enjoy!

*Alternatively you can use the leaves as little 'tacos'. Do not steam the leaves and leave the stem intact. Place the filling in the center and drizzle with the sauce. Enjoy and healthy eating!

Often when one thinks of the word salad they conjure up images of lettuce blandly adorning a plate drizzled with fat free dressing and instantaneously that dreaded word 'diet' pops into mind. Salads however, do not have to be boring and should never be associated with diets but with nutrients, vitamins and minerals.

The base of most salads rely on lettuce of some sort, as a younger person I gravitated towards mild greens such as Romaine or the dreaded Iceberg because that was what I knew. I remember tasting fresh arugula for the first time and being blown away by its pepper nature and sampling frisee in all its bitterness and declaring it gross! However, as I have experimented my taste buds have changed and I began to embrace greens and see them in a whole new light.

Personally, I now find Iceberg watery and gross and Romaine lacking in crispness and taste. Most of the time my go too green is Kale or Baby Spinach but once my Royal Acres Farm CSA starts for the summer I know that I will be forced to expand my usual palate and create some interesting salads to manage all of those fresh greens!

Last week I was all about the Arugula but this week Escarole was in the bunch and I couldn't wait to get it home and try some new ways of eating it. Sure I could have just torn it up and chopped from tomatoes and avocado and had a nice salad or I could have sauteed it with white beans and hot sauce (one of my favorite dishes) but I was in the mood for something heartier and a little more interesting.

Thus, this grilled Escarole Salad was born. The grill provides the perfect place for lightly wilting the leaves and roasting the chickpeas while the cucumber salad boasts a fresh Mediterranean flavor combining cucumbers, tomatoes, red onion, olives, corn, feta,garlic scapes and oregano. The cucumber, dill, yogurt, and lemon of the Tzatziki dressing adds a tart creaminess to the dish that counteracts with the slight char of the Escarole. I hope that you enjoy!

Grilled Escarole with Cucumber Salad, Roasted Chickpeas and Tzatziki

Serves 2 (with extra cucumber salad for a later date)

1 head of Escarole

Drizzle of Olive Oil and Sprinkle of Pink Himalayan Sea Salt

Roasted Chickpeas

1 cup of Chickpeas (soaked and sprouted)

1/4 tsp Paprika

1/4 tsp Oregano

1 tbs Olive Oil

Pink Himalayan Sea Salt

Cucumber Salad

1 large Cucumber, chopped 1/2 cup reserved for dressing

2 Roma Tomatoes, chopped

1/2 Red Onion, chopped

1 ear of Corn

1 cup of Olives of your choice, chopped

1 Garlic Scape Stalk, chopped

1 tbs Fresh Oregano, minced

1/2 cup Feta Cheese

1 tsp Pink Himalayan Sea Salt

Tzatziki Dressing

1/2 cup Cucumber (reserved from salad)

Juice of 1 Lemon

1 clove of Garlic

1 tbs Olive Oil

1 tbs Dill, dried or fresh

1 tsp Pink Himalayan Sea Salt

3 tbs Plain Yogurt

Preheat 1/2 of the grill. Toss the chickpeas with the olive oil, salt, oregano, and paprika. Place in a shallow pan (I use a loaf pan) and place on the grill over medium heat to roast.

Meanwhile, chop the cucumber, tomato, onion, olives, oregano and garlic scape combining in a large bowl. Add the corn that has been removed from the ear and feta cheese, tossing to combine. Sprinkle with some sea salt and place to the side.

Check on the chickpeas and toss, lowering heat and moving to the cool side of the grill if needed.

Using a blender, immersion blender, or smoothie maker (this is what I used) add the cucumber, garlic, lemon juice, dill, salt, and yogurt, blending until smooth. Taste and adjust as necessary. Set aside.

Rinse the Escarole by dunking into a bowl of water to remove dirt. Cut in half and dry with a paper towel. Drizzle olive oil on the cut side and sprinkle with sea salt. Remove Chickpeas from the grill and place Escarole cut side down over medium low heat cooking until lightly wilted with a small amount of char, about 2 minutes. Flip and repeat.

Remove from grill and place on 2 plates. Add a generous spoonful of the cucumber salad and roasted chickpeas topping with the tzatziki dressing. Enjoy and Healthy Eating!

*you could always just toss the cucumber salad with the tzatziki dressing and chop the grilled escarole in order to combine. The flavors work great together and the extra dressing or cucumber salad is awesome on its own as well!